When I think of Indonesia, I think of dense rainforest, dripping water, dim green light, giant trees with leaves the size of picnic tables, dark wood, orangutans. I think mystery and the weight of millennia hanging in the unmoving air inside the rainforest. This may be true of parts of the country, but not true of Kuta Beach on Bali. Think surfing, surfboards, surf shops, surf schools and surfers. Think suntan, suntan oil, sunbathers and sunshine. Think sand, waves, a fringe of palm trees and a beach road jammed with cars, motorbikes, scooters, minivans and even horse-drawn carts. Think shopping. It's dense here. Thousands of people on the long, long, broad beach, jade-green waves curling up and breaking a little offshore. On a reef further out more waves break, curling over in a white line with
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